Arrest made in murder of Tyshawn Lee

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Police say they have a person of interest in custody in the fatal shooting earlier this month of a 9-year-old boy on the city’s South Side. A crowd of chanting protesters is continuing demonstrations around downtown Chicago over the shooting death of a black teenager by a white police officer.

About 4 p.m. on Nov. 2, Tyshawn was lured into an alley in the 8000 block of South Damen and executed in retaliation against the boy’s father, authorities say. But if you are long gone, you’ll be brought back, it’s just a matter of time,” Holmes said. “Nobody can say they honor Tyshawn and not do something to change the society that brings us here today. Nobody has a right to bring up his name without making a change in your house, in your block, in your neighborhood, in your city,” Pfleger said. “Step up, break this code of silence or whatever ya’ll got going on with this gang stuff, break that, put the guns down, ya’ll killing babies out here,” Lee said. Tyshawn, who was just 83 pounds and 56 inches tall, wore black jeans, plaid boxers, an orange Polo shirt and a dark jacket with yellow lining on his final day of life. Demonstrators say in addition to police shootings, they’ve seen schools and mental health clinics in their communities closed, a lack of jobs and a high rate of unsolved murders.

They say a Black Friday protest aimed at shutting down a major downtown shopping area will send a message by hitting Chicago where it hurts — in the pocketbook. Prosecutors have charged Officer Jason Van Dyke with first-degree murder for the death last year of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who was shot 16 times.

Obama said on his Facebook page Wednesday that he is asking Americans to “keep those who’ve suffered tragic loss in our thoughts and prayers” this Thanksgiving, “and to be thankful for the overwhelming majority of men and women in uniform who protect our communities with honor.” The marchers disrupted traffic along the busy State Street shopping corridor. Sanders said in an emailed statement on Wednesday that there needs to be action beyond echoing the phrase “black lives matter.” The U.S. senator from Vermont says there should be action and reform to criminal justice. The Urban League of Chicago on Wednesday called for a federal Department of Justice investigation, alleging a pattern of “discriminatory harassment” against black people.

He also wants a special prosecutor on the case, saying Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez took too long to bring a murder charge in the 2014 shooting. Judge Peggy Chiampas said during a hearing Wednesday afternoon that the state’s attorney’s office recommended the charge be dismissed and told London he was free to go. Protest groups are expected to stage more demonstrations in the days ahead, including one at City Hall scheduled for Wednesday and another seeking to block Michigan Avenue during Friday’s holiday shopping bonanza.